Irrevocable
by Carmelina Ballerina
Summary: The war is over. Gale is in Two and Katniss is in Twelve. Madge is long gone. History is irrevocable, and Gale knows that better than anyone. But in this world, deception is everything. Sequel to my story Breakable, don't need to read first.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Gale's story is far from finished. Here's the sequel to my fanfic Breakable. You don't have to read that to understand this. Quick recap: Gale and Madge survived the District 12 bombing, but she was sent on a mission to get Peeta from the Capitol, in which she (along with other soldiers) were shot by Capitol guards. She left Gale a note telling him to move on from her and be happy, but Gale (in a typical Gale fashion) will not be told what to do. So he is pretty much never getting over this. Here goes...**

_Chapter 1._

_Gale POV_

I'm about halfway home when I feel the first drop of rain. One look at the clouds confirms it: I'm about to get poured on. Somehow, I don't care. Come to think of it, ever since everything went to hell months ago, I've stopped caring about a lot of things.

I hear a sharp intake of breath come from behind me. It's probably one of the weird Capitol citizens who have moved to the districts after the war. For some reason, I'm always being stopped by them. They usually mention the television show I frequent, Panem Daily, or they tell me about how brave I was during the war. _As if_. I'll be asked for autographs and some of the younger female ones have even tried to chat me up! Some have even given me their phone numbers. However, sticking with my theme of not caring, I always discard of the small slips of paper as soon as they're gone.

I keep walking, not even stopping to turn around. Within seconds, I hear footsteps closing the distance behind me. It's drizzling now, and the temperature has dropped a few degrees. And of course, just my luck, there's a train crossing the tracks as I approach them. It will be at least a minute or two before the tracks are clear and I can cross them to get back to my condo before the storm picks up. The storm isn't the only thing picking up- I can hear the footsteps quickening behind me.

"Hey!" the voice calls out from a few feet behind me. I turn around to see a girl, about my age, with long brown hair and big blue eyes staring at me. "Are you Gale Hawthorne?" she asks once she has caught her breath.

"Depends," I reply, looking her over. There's something familiar about her- from the way her jaw slopes to her bright blue eyes. It's when she blinks and I notice her super-long eyelashes that I'm able to place it- she looks like Madge. It feels like my heart is twisting in my chest at just the thought of her.

"Um, are you okay?" she asks, interrupting my thoughts.

"Yeah. Sorry. You, uh, just remind me of someone I used to know."

"Oh. Um, I don't know if that's a compliment or not, but my name is Jackie Undersee and-" _No._

"Whoa, what did you say your name was?" I ask frantically.

"Um, Jackie? Well it's Jacqueline but no one really calls me that."

"No, your last name?"

"Oh. Undersee." She says with a small smile. "You're putting it all together now, aren't you?" she asks, her smile growing.

"Sorry, what?" I ask. I'm totally confused- putting what together? That she's got to be some distant relative to Madge because there is no way she could share the last name and look so much like her. Unless this is the latest way what the universe is continuing to play sick, cruel jokes on me.

"Yup, you totally have it now. I can see it in your face."

"Could you explain please?" I ask. Thankfully, the storm has decided to wait a few more minutes, because the drizzle has stopped and the chill has somewhat left the air. Which is a good thing, seeing as we're standing out in the open beside the District Two railroad tracks.

"You're trying to figure out why I look so much like a girl from your home district, right? And why I have the same last name as she does?" Her use of the present tense sends knots to my stomach and sweat to my palms. Under no circumstance do I want to be the one to break the news about to Madge to this girl. Especially if she's family.

I settle for a relatively simple answer. "Um, yeah."

"Well, you knew Reynold Undersee, right?" she asks. _Who, the asshole of a mayor who did nothing but hate me the entire time I was with his daughter? Yeah, the name rings a bell. _But instead of snapping at Jackie, I just nod, taking a minute to notice her use of the past tense. So she knows about Mr. Undersee, but not Madge? Makes sense, seeing as the last she probably heard, Magde survived the bombing. I wouldn't be surprised if she didn't know about the Capitol mission. Then again, I have no idea what District this girl is from, or how she even found out the information she appears to know. Weird.

"He's my dad's brother…my uncle. Or was. Anyway, he was my uncle and his wife was my aunt. So naturally, their daughter, Madge, is my cousin. I'm from District One…pre-war, that is. I lived there with my parents and my two younger brothers. When the Quarter Quell happened, we got all types of reports from my Uncle Reynold about what was happening in his District. I saw you on television a lot, which is why I recognized you a little while ago. I know you are Katniss Everdeen's cousin, right?" _Wrong. _"But why I stopped you is because I know something you might want to." Her last sentence comes out as a very rushed jumble of words.

"Oh, okay. What's up?" I ask, intrigued.

"Well, it's kind of a long story but I just recognized you and I didn't know if I would have a chance to ever tell you! So I'm sorry in advance that I'll be talking forever and ever but it's important." I nod. "So, Madge and I used to write each other letters and her father would play the role of messenger because he visited here quite often. The last few I got from her before the war mentioned your name and she was always speaking really highly of you. I don't really know what was going on, but I know she really cared about you from those letters."

Totally not what I was expecting, not going to lie. I honestly don't know what I was expecting, but this seems pretty random and not something worth stopping someone for.

"Oh-"

"No, I'm not finished. I stopped getting letters from her about a week before the report came in that District Twelve had been bombed and destroyed. My dad found out from his connections in the Capitol that anyone who had survived the bombing was being held in District Thirteen as temporary citizens or something. After my dad told me about Thirteen, I begged him to let me go but he refused. He did place some calls, though and he found out that my aunt and uncle hadn't survived, but Madge was in District Thirteen. One day he called to check if my aunt and uncle had been found or had survived somehow, and when he asked, they told him that Madge was assigned to a group of soldiers responsible for finding Peeta Mellark from the Capitol and bringing him and some of the other captives back to District Thirteen safely. We knew all about the torturing and such because the Capitol loves to brag and kept playing the footage on our televisions. But anyway, we never heard about what had happened until a few months ago."

"What did you hear?" I ask. I wonder if anyone told her about her cousin's death, or if they lied. A loud crack of thunder interrupts my thoughts, and clearly startles Jackie.

"Um, if you have time, can we go grab some shelter somewhere? The sky isn't looking too promising." She points up at the sky, which has become practically black with thick rain clouds. I hadn't even noticed. I nod, and she points to a large building not too far from the other side of the tracks.

"There's a coffee shop inside that strip, I think. That okay?" she asks. I nod. A cup of coffee sounds amazing right now, not going to lie. She nods, and we cross the now empty tracks. She even walks like Madge.

**A/N: Sorry it was so short, but I really had to stop it here so the next chapter could work well with this one and it wasn't too confusing. Next one will be longer, I promise! Sooooooo please tell me what you think… should I keep going? Do you want to know what happens? Review and let me know pleas!e :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I can't believe it's only the second chapter and I'm already slacking on updates both with length and timing! I'm really sorry, I had totally planned to have this up like 6 days ago, but school is kicking my butt and my parents won't stop nagging me about everything and I totally shouldn't be making excuses right now. So I'll leave it at sorry.**

Chapter_ 2._

_Gale POV_

Safe from the pouring rain, Jackie and I sit down at a booth inside the coffee shop. A woman wearing an apron comes over and asks us what we want to drink.

One thing I haven't really gotten used to in the District change is that here in Two, there's always someone to do things for you. Never mind that we didn't even have coffee shops in Twelve. No matter where you go, there's always someone there to make your life a little easier- waiters at restaurants, library clerks, crossing guards, even people who get paid to hold the freaking door outside office buildings and apartment complexes. It's insane. It reminds me of footage of the Capitol I used to see on occasion on television back home. Every time I think about how wrong it is to have strangers catering to my needs just as a citizen, let alone a government official, I want to think it's terrible, but then I think about how accustomed I've become to having someone bring my mail to my condo instead of having to walk to the justice building to get it. Even in Twelve, mail was insanely rare. We only ever checked for it each month when we picked up the tesserae rations.

We both order coffee, I take mine black. We settle into a sort-of uncomfortable silence while we wait for our drinks to come. Once the waitress brings them over and we've gotten about halfway through them, Jackie breaks the silence. "So you know my cousin?"

I clear my throat before responding. "Knew," I correct.

"Knew? I don't understand," her eyebrows furrow.

"Yeah, about that, she uh-" I begin.

"Ohhhhh, I know what you mean. Yeah, she's not dead," Jackie cuts me off, setting her cup down on the table.

"She is though," I argue. It's not that I want Madge to be dead, or even that I want to crush Jackie's hope. It's just the thought of the hope getting to me, and being let down is not something I want to experience. At all.

"No, she-"

"I watched it. She's dead."

"Let me talk!" Jackie shouts, startling me a little. She starts laughing, which is even more surprising. I motion for her to go on, reaching for my drink. "She's alive, I promise. I saw her this morning before I left home! So unless she died in the last five or six hours, she is very much alive."

"But…how? I watched it. She was shot, she didn't get up. The report came in and her name was on the list…I don't understand."

Jackie flashes me a perfect white smile. "She can explain all of that to you. Well, assuming you want to see her?"

"Yes!" I practically yell. Jackie looks about as surprised at my shouting as I am. "I mean...yeah, of course. I totally want to see her. When can I?" I can feel my cheeks reddening.

"Well, I have to go pick up some stuff across town for work and I'm on the night shift beginning at nine, but Madge should be home all night. You can go anytime you want, I guess," she shrugs, picking up her drink.

"Seriously? You're not like kidding or anything, right? I mean…as weird as it sounds, it makes sense that she's uh…you know, dead. I don't see how-"

"I'm not kidding, I promise. Although this is kind of weird that all of this is happening, I'll give you that much. I was trying to get across town and I saw the uniform and I thought it could have been you…I saw you on TV a few times during the war…and I remembered Madge telling me about how she always wondered what happened to this guy Gale from her District. I kind of put two and two together that it was the famous Gale Hawthorne she was talking about. And then I thought that it could have been you, and it was! Kind of weird, huh?" I nod. "But I get why you might be skeptical or whatever. If you don't believe me, go to the house and see for yourself. Cross the train tracks again, walk down the main road for a half mile. Turn right at the market and it's a white house, the third one on the right hand side of the street."

I quickly drain the remainder of my coffee and throw down enough money to cover both of our drinks. "Thank you, Jackie. Seriously, thanks. I don't even know what else to say besides that. Hopefully, I'll see you around," I say, sliding out from the booth.

"Oh, don't even worry about it! And thanks for the coffee. I have to go to work soon or else I would definitely come with you, but I hope I'll see you soon. Bye!" Jackie flashes another huge smile and waves me off.

I don't think I've ever made it across town as quickly. The torrential downpour had changed over to a light drizzle while Jackie and I were having coffee, but the rain isn't going to stop me. I follow Jackie's instructions to a T… over the tracks, down the main road, and to the tailor. As I make the right onto the street she told me the house is on, the rain begins to pick up, falling in steady sheets now. My heart starts pounding even more than before. There's a sheet of cold sweat on the back of neck that's being washed away by the lukewarm rain. I pass the first house, then the second. Sure enough, the third house on the right is a small house with white siding. The wooden door is closed and all of the curtains are drawn, but I can see a sliver of light peeking through the front window.

Summoning my courage, I slowly walk up the path from the street to the door, focusing on keeping my heart from jumping up my throat. I'm soaked from head to toe, but I'm past the point of caring. I reach out without hesitation to press the doorbell. My heart skips a beat when I hear movement on the other side of the door. The sound of the lock turning doesn't do much to calm the mix of nerves and excitement coursing through my body. I focus on my shoelaces, trying to take deep breaths. The door opens and I look up.

"Gale, oh my god," is the only thing I hear before I step forward. Madge wraps her arms around me and holds on like her life depends on it. I can hear her crying, and I find myself stroking her hair, whether it be to try to calm her down or to reassure myself she's real, I don't know. Frankly, I don't care. All that matters is that she's here and I'm here and she's really alive. She's getting poured on, but she doesn't seem to mind, seeing as she latches herself onto me and doesn't let go. "They told me you were dead," she chokes out, grabbing onto me even tighter, her crying intensifying. "They told me the same thing about you," I respond in a low voice. "Don't let me leave again," she says, her voice cracking. "Never," I respond instantly, although my heart sinks to my feet at her words. _Does she blame me too? _After a minute of staying in the rain I my embrace, she steps back and wipes her eyes. "How…how did you…" she hiccups, her teeth chattering.

"Madge, you're freezing," I point out. She grabs my hand and pulls me into the house. The warmth of the house envelops me almost instantly, and the numb feeling leaves my ears pretty quickly. WE stand in the breezeway for a minute, just staring at each other. Suddenly, she steps forward and wraps her arms around me again.

_Madge POV_

"I can't believe this, you…you aren't dead," I say with a small laugh, reaching my hand up to run it through his wet hair. I can't help but smile at him.

"It's you who was the dead one," Gale attempts a joke, but I can hear his voice falter. I squeeze him even tighter.

"I missed you so much, I don't even know how I can express it," I whisper. "I never thought I would survive that mission." When he doesn't respond, I pull away. For a few seconds, we just stare at each other, before something clicks in both of us and we lean our faces in at the same time. My hands find his face, and his my waist, and things feel like normal again. Our lips mold together just like they used to, however many months ago. The kiss is full of longing, but in no way can it make up for all of the lost time. We get lost in each other's touch for what feels like no time at all. When he pulls back, I'm pressed against the wall and he's leaning over me, his hands working through my hair. I look at him expectantly, to which he responds with, "I can't feel my toes."

I can't help but laugh. There's Gale for you- always quite the romantic. I lead him into Jackie's room, where I know her fiancé has a drawer of clothes. Handing over some dry clothes and a pair of socks, I point him towards the bathroom. I head into my own room, where I change into dry clothes as well, and when I come back out, he's standing against the wall, waiting for me with a smirk on his face. I take the wet clothes from his hands and walk them to the laundry room with my clothes, and put them in the dryer. When I return to the hallway, he's standing in the same spot.

"Hey," I say.

"Hey," he replies with a smile. I motion for him to follow me into the kitchen, where I put the coffee pot on. We both sit at the table once the coffee has brewed and he reaches for my hand.

"Gale?" I ask after a moment.

"Hmm?"

"How did you know? That I was alive and all? And what did they say to you when I was on the mission? Why did you think I was dead?" I ask.

The slight smile on his face falters a little bit. "Oh wow, where to begin…" his voice trails off.

**A/N: What did you guys think was going to happen? Did you like it? Hate it? What do you think is in store for Madge and Gale later on? Everyone knows there's no way their lives will be drama-free...review and let me know! I'll reply to all of them, I swear!**


	3. Chapter 3

_Chapter Three_

_Madge POV_

Within minutes of Gale speaking, my eyes are filled with tears and I have to bite my lip to keep them from falling from my eyes. "The ceremonies were the, uh, the worst part," Gale continues with his story. "After the rest of the teams came back, President Coin called convocation of the entire District. The team members, they stood at attention in the front of the huge assembly hall and Coin called their names and they each received medals of valor…which are kind of different than the ones we had in Twelve, because you don't have to be dead to get it. And then, the horrible part was when they called the names of the people who didn't return. After each name, there was a moment of silence and a fellow crew member spoke a little about the person."

"Was I..." my voice gets caught in my throat, but before I can continue, he nods.

"You were on the list. Finnick Odair spoke about you. He told everyone about your first night in the Capitol. He said that you had to keep moving by foot through the night to get to the mansion by day break and that he kept coughing because of the Capitol pollution. Apparently, you got so fed up with it that you started yelling at him and got so distracted that you walked off the trail and got separated from the group?" he phrases the sentence as a question and looks at me questioningly.

I let out a short laugh. "Yeah, I was bringing up the rear of the line of people, so none of them followed me or looked back for a while. I had finally looked up when I realized I couldn't hear anyone around me anymore and I was in the middle of a wooded area about a mile outside of the city area. I didn't remember how I got there or how to get back to the right trail, so I sat down and hoped they would come and find me. After about three minutes of that, I got restless and I tried to find my way back onto the trail and catch up to them and I ran straight into Finnick and knocked him down," I say with a laugh, remembering it like it was yesterday.

"Yep, he told us all about that, it was good. He got everyone laughing through their tears, he was a great speaker," Gale smiles.

"Was?" I ask shakily, even though I know I don't want to hear the answer.

"Madge… Finnick, he died. I'm sorry." I knew I didn't want to hear it. I blink furiously, trying to keep the tears back.

"I…I just… I knew I couldn't count on anyone's life after everything happened, but out of everyone I went on the mission with, I was secretly hoping for Finnick's life out of everyone's. He was so nice to me, and he told me all these stories about Annie, the reason he volunteered for the mission. I just…I just really wanted him to be alive, I guess," I sniffle, blinking back another round of hot tears. Gale reaches across the table and takes my hand in his.

"I'm sorry, Madge. I really liked the guy too, he was a great guy and he constantly raved about you. I can tell he really had a soft spot for you, although who wouldn't?" he starts rubbing circles on the back of my hand with his thumb. I can't help but smile at his words.

"How did he die?" I ask after a minute of silence.

"Hmm?" Gale asks, looking up at me.

"Finnick. How did he.."

Gale nods. "Oh, yeah. Well, I don't know if you know what was happening in Thirteen and in the Capitol after the mission returned to Thirteen?"

"I don't know anything except that Snow is dead and so is Coin, and that the Hunger Games are over. That was the ten second briefing I got from Jackie, other than that, I don't really talk about it, and she gets really weird when I ask, so I don't tend to bring it up," I explain, stifling a yawn.

"Okay. Well, first of all, follow me," he says, rising from his seat. I stay in mine, not sue what he has in mind.

"What are you doing?" I ask.

"Come on!"

"No!" I argue with a laugh.

"Okay, fine," he says. For a second, I think he's about to sit back down and quit being so weird, but in two steps he crosses the floor and he scoops me out of the chair. "Gale, put me down!" I squeal, locking my arms around his neck out of fear of falling. He leans down and places a quick kiss on my nose.

"No way, Undersee!" he laughs, a sound that sounds so much like home that I can't help but laugh with him. He carries me out of the room and into the sitting room, where he lowers himself carefully onto the couch, not letting me go. He leans back and slides me to his side so I fit perfectly in his lap. All of this affection is fairly unlike him, but I've missed him so much, there's no way I'm going to question it. Maybe he just changed in the past couple of months.

"Why'd you do that?" I ask through my laughter. Almost instantly, the smile falls off his face and he pulls me closer, wrapping his arm around me protectively.

"Cause it's not a good story."

"But I want to hear it. No, Gale, I need to hear what happened. Please," I turn to look him in the eye. He nods slowly before speaking.

"Alright, well the rest of the mission came back to Thirteen. It was then that the doctors realized that Peeta, Johanna, and Annie had been tortured in the Capitol. Peeta was the worst, he was hijacked. Do you know what that is?" he asks. I shake my head. "Well, basically, they took the venom from tracker jackers, like the ones in the nest Katniss cut down in the first Games. They injected it into him and while he was hallucinating, they showed him videos of Katniss and Haymitch and everyone who was crucial to his role in the revolution. Because of the effects of the venom, he was left with a negative connotation of the videos, and over time, he grew an immense hatred towards people, Katniss especially. It got pretty bad- when they first brought him to Thirteen from the Capitol, he tried to kill Katniss."

"Oh my god," I want to say more, but I can't.

"Johanna, they later figured out, was tortured with water. And Annie, they told her lies about Finnick. They told her they had captured him and would kill him. That was all it took for her to go even crazier. President Coin sent a bunch of people on different missions while Peeta and Johanna recuperated. Annie, well, once she saw Finnick again she was fine- or at least, as fine as she has been in a while. There were some small trips for propaganda, which I got to go on. I mainly stayed in Special Weapons and went on propo missions. Katniss and I were able to hunt, which was good. Really good. Eventually, there was only so much more we could do and Coin decided we had to end everything with the Capitol once and for all by taking down Snow. Katniss had to get clearance to go on this mission, which took some training. Johanna tried too, but she couldn't do it…she broke down and they brought her back to command. Katniss went on the mission, Finnick too. They lost a lot of their crew- including Finnick. There were these mutations…they took so many of them…Katniss killed Coin, and she was under investigation. There was a trial and everything, but Haymitch worked really hard to clear her name."

"And Snow?" I ask when he finishes.

"When Katniss killed Coin, which is a story for another day, he was killed in the madness that ensued shortly thereafter," he says with a small shrug. He absentmindedly picks up a piece of my hair and begins twirling it around his finger.

"Thank goodness," I say, and a hint of a smile plays on Gale's face. "And Peeta and Katniss? And their families?"

"What's that?" he asks, turning to face me.

"What about Katniss and Peeta? And their families? Did everyone make it?" I say, noticing how he suddenly drops the piece of hair and inhales sharply.

"Gale?" I ask cautiously, shifting as he removes his hands to run them over his face rapidly. His eyes fix themselves on the wall straight ahead.

"Peeta..he uh, he's better," Gale begins slowly. "Not perfect, but good enough that he and Katniss are living together in Twelve, which is in the process of being rebuilt. Mrs. Everdeen is in District Four. She, um, is working on starting up a hospital there," he says, slowly nodding his head, clearly deep in thought.

"And Prim?" I ask, beginning to rake my fingers through the hair on the back of his head. I look up at his questioningly when he makes no response, only to see his eyes haven't moved from the spot on the wall. His glassy stare worries me, but I know from experience not to push him. I shift my position so I'm actually in his lap. I swing one leg over his knees and sit practically on his knees so I'm right in his line of vision. "Gale?" his gaze drops at my voice, and he blinks a few times before looking me in the eye.

He starts shaking his head back and forth. "I'm sorry," his voice is just above a whisper. The look in his eyes says it all. I can feel hot tears pooling in my eyes at the thought of the sweet girl I had always adored. "I'm sorry," he repeats, a little louder this time. I've never seen him like this before, which is a little troubling. I force the tears back, determined to keep them from falling.

"Gale, listen to me," I say, taking his face in my hands so he stops shaking his head and he looks at me. "Another time, okay? I don't need to know now. It can wait, alright? Right now, I just need to know that you're going to be okay."

He grabs my waist and pulls me closer to him. "I love you," is all he says before kissing me slowly. When he pulls away, he says, "I'll be fine. It just…it all still feels too weird. Now that we're back together, I don't know. Things…they just seem to right…too _normal, _like I- like _we_ never skipped a beat. It shouldn't feel like that. It should feel like Prim is dead and Katniss hates me and I haven't seen my family in months and it should feel like my world is falling apart," he says.

"Why does…" I begin.

"Katniss hate me?" he finishes my question with a short laugh. "Have you ever made a mistake? Like a really big mistake?" he asks. Without having to think for too long, I nod. "I made a mistake. One of the worst things I've ever done….and Katniss has every right to be mad at me."

"You don't have to tell me," I offer, but he shakes his head. "You deserve to know," he says.

"No, don't worry about it. Another time, okay?" I argue.

"Alright. I'm sorry," he says.

"Don't be," I respond with a smile, and he leans in and kisses me again.

**A/N: Apologies for the lame ending :/** **Also, I finished all of the stories I've been reading, so if you write any stories you would like me to check out (doesn't have to be HG fandom, hopefully I know the original story!) please leave the name in the review section. I'll check everything out. Going along with that, if you've read anything good you'd like to recommend, leave the title and author in the description! Thank you all!**


	4. Chapter 4

**I'm insanely sorry this took so long for me to post. **

**I live on the east coast, and we were pummeled by Hurricane Sandy, so I had no power for two weeks. Then, when things returned to normal, I wrote this chapter and just needed to finish a few paragraphs when my computer broke. It was so bad that none of my programs (word, chrome, etc.) would open so I couldn't finish writing. So I brought into the tech lab at my school and the guy who was going to fix it told me he would back everything up, wipe the computer, and restore everything. Which would fix my problems. Turns out he didn't do the backup and I lost EVERYTHING. This is my school computer, too, so I lost all of my notes, papers, and projects in addition to this story. On top of that, I just got back from being on vacation for a week outside the country. **

**I'm sort of all over the place, but things are beginning to feel like normal again, and I was able to re-write this. Thanks for sticking with me! **

**Quick recap: Gale and Madge are reunited in Two, sitting on the couch talking about what happened while Madge was MIA/assumed to be dead. This chapter picks up right where we left off last chapter. Enjoy!  
**

Chapter 4

_Gale POV_

The lights begin flickering and Madge stiffens beside me, her breath catching in her throat. "It's okay, just the power going out," I tell her, my fingers finding a lock of her hair. "They're switching the power lines so they're underground. They said not to be surprised if there were some power problems this week," I explain, trying to figure out what it is that has her on edge. She nods absentmindedly, taking a shaky breath.

"What's this?" I ask, rubbing my thumb over the exposed skin of her collarbone where there's a small white scar. It's perfectly round, about the size of a pea. I notice another one, identical to the first, about an inch to the right. Before she has a chance to respond, a loud sizzle comes from outside as the transformer blows out. I can feel Madge's nails digging into the skin of my arm, and her palms have begun to sweat. I can see tears welling in her eyes, threatening to spill over. It's only when she sees the sparks raining down onto the street and screws her eye shut that I put the pieces together. The scar. The skittish behavior with the electricity issues.

"Madge...what did they do to you?" I ask cautiously. She just shakes her head and starts crying. "Hey hey hey," I say. "Take a deep breath, you're fine. You're safe, I promise. They can't get you," I tell her, gently removing her iron grip from my arm and pulling her to my chest. She starts crying even harder, pointing to her scar and trying to speak, but the tears are muddling her voice to the point of incomprehension. "Another time," is all I say, and she nods, frantically swiping at her eyes.

We sit in comfortable silence for a while before I can see her eyes begin to droop. She stifles a yawn before turning to me. "Stay?" She asks, and I nod without hesitation. "Jackie's at work until the morning and Reed, her fiancé, is visiting family in Six until the end of the week. Just us," she says, standing up with a yawn. I nod and get to my feet.

She leads the way to her room, and flops right on the bed. She doesn't even bother taking off her shoes, and by the time I take mine off, she's already fast asleep. I, on the other hand, spend nearly an hour trying to ward off nightmares and fall asleep. Which I should be thankful for, because an hour is practically record speed for me. At some point, Madge begins to stir, waking up long enough to take off her sweater and toss it onto the floor, leaving her in a black tee shirt, before falling right back asleep, snuggling into me. Eventually, I fall asleep with her head on my chest.

In my dreams, I'm back in the Capitol alongside Katniss, Finnick, Boggs, and the rest of the crew. We're running down a brightly colored city block. Before rounding the corner, we all stop so Boggs can check his Holo to make sure the next block is safe. After giving the 'all clear', we set off down the next block, weapons poised and boots stomping against the pink cobblestone. Castor and Pollux are running backwards in front of us, doing their best to capture our every move. Cressida is calling out orders to the two "insects" as Katniss calls them.

I'm focused on the street that lies before me, my bow loaded with an arrow and poised to shoot if anything should get in my way. I look over at Katniss, but she isn't there. I yell for everyone to stop, but nothing comes out. No matter how loud I scream, I'm not making a sound. Everyone runs right past me, leaving me alone on the bright city block. I try yelling for Katniss, but this time, my mouth won't even open. I'm startled by a bloodcurdling scream from right next to me. I spin to find the source of the sound, but it isn't Katniss who I see.

Instead, I see Prim lying on the ground at the corner of the street, the end of her blond braid singed and ash smudged across her face. I can't move my legs to get to her, though. She stays on the ground, her screams getting louder as a silver parachute floats down right onto her lap. I try yelling again, but it's worthless. I can't move or speak. I stand there, no choice but to watch. The unopened parachute sits on her lap. She's screaming even louder, if that's possible. All of a sudden, she stops screaming and locks eyes with me. She gives me her usual, happy smile. And then the parachute goes off, leaving nothing but a pile of ash and a cloud of thick black smoke behind.

"Gale," I hear before I can process anything. I'm still frozen in place. "Gale," the voice says again. "Gale!" It becomes more frantic. _I can't get to you, come to me,_ I want to scream. "Gale! Gale!" the voice is getting louder.

I frantically open my eyes to see Madge sitting up in bed, looking over me. My upper body is covered in a thin layer of sweat, the most uncomfortable type. I inhale quickly and deeply in an attempt to catch my breath and get my bearings. Madge's hand is on my shoulder, and she repeats my name. I look up at her. One look is all it takes for me to realize that she wasn't just waking me from a nightmare. Something's wrong. "What's wrong?" I ask, sitting up quickly and taking her face in my hands, looking her over.

"I don't know,"she says. "Something's not right with my head. My heart, too. It's beating so fast, I...I can't..." she manages to get out before her eyes roll back in her head.

"Madge!" I shout, shaking her, but she isn't responding. I swear under my breath and jump out of the bed, quickly grabbing her sweater off of the chair. I do my best to drape it over her shoulders before scooping her up off the bed and into my arms, praying that the rain has stopped. I run out the door, moving as fast as my legs will carry me down the street and all the way into town. I'm especially grateful it isn't far. I know the way to the hospital. It's only a few weeks old, and very modern.

I burst through the door and a nurse sees me and runs up with a wheelchair. She helps me place Madge into the chair gently while asking me a slew of questions, many of which I don't have the answers to. She eventually gives up and takes Madge, who is still unconscious, down the hallway and through a set of double doors. I race after them, but another nurse stops me. "Proper attire is required," she says. I give her a funny look before she points to my feet. That's when I realize I'm not wearing shoes. "Please-" I begin, but she puts up a hand, silencing me. She points to a section of chairs on the other side of the room. I try to speak again, but she points again, not even looking up from her computer. Reluctantly, I take a seat in one of the uncomfortable chairs and stare at the clock. After several minutes, the cranky nurse gets up from the desk and disappears into an adjacent room. As soon as the door swings shut behind her, I get up and quickly slip through the double doors they brought Madge through a little while ago.

I take the hallway all the way down to another nurse's station, where I am beyond thankful to see a familiar face. "Jackie, hey, I didn't know you worked here. Please help me," I say. She points down a long hallway. " Take the stairs at the end of the corridor to the third floor. Room 317. They have to do tests, so she may or may not be in there. Either way, she won't be conscious," she warns. I nod, thanking her before hurrying down the hallway and up the stairs. I pass room after room until I see 317. I quickly slip into the room before anyone can see me and yell at me for my lack of "proper attire."

Madge is laying in the bed against the wall, hooked up to several machines. Her chest is rising and falling quietly; the only audible sound in the room is the heart monitor's steady beeping. Everything about it reminds me of when Katniss was in and out of the hospital in Thirteen. I sit in the chair next to the bed, reaching over the bar on the side of the bed and taking her small hand in mine. I can't help wonder when it will stop being like this- having each other back for such a short amount of time before something happens. Our fight back in Twelve, the bombing, the mission, now this. I must sit like that, holding her hand and just thinking for hours. Nurses come in and out, but every time they are accompanied by Jackie, who seems to be running the show. Eventually I fall asleep sitting up.

The next thing I hear is my name being called by a vaguely familiar voice. My eyes snap open, registering Jackie standing next to me. "Jackie, hey. What's going on?" I sit up quickly, wiping the spot of drool from the corner of my mouth.

All of the tests came back negative. The next step is to do another body scan," she says quietly.

"Another body scan?" I ask. I was unaware there was a first body scan.

She nods. "The one we did last night came back clean. We're going to do a different type. Basically she will lay on a board which will slowly move her through a magnetic machine which will show us what, if anything, is wrong."

"Are you sure it wasn't just a one time thing?" I ask. She nods again. "She still hasn't come out of the sedative, and we cut it off about an hour ago. We thought she'd be up and responsive by now, but she isn't."

"Yes she is," Madge's groggy voice interrupts. Jackie spins around and I stand up quickly, giving Madge's hand a squeeze. "Ah, there she is," Jackie grins. "Here I am," Madge says cheerily.

"How do you feel?" I ask. "Like shit," she deadpans. Jackie and I share a look. "Kidding. I'll be fine. What, uh, happened to me?" She asks after a second. "We don't really know yet. You woke Gale up because your head was hurting and your heart was beating rapidly, and then you passed out. He brought you here and we ran some tests, but everything came back negative."

"What time is it?" Madge asks suddenly. I check my watch "Ten past nine," I tell her. "At night?!" She asks frantically, pointing at the window, which shows the dark sky. Both Jackie and I nod. "I was supposed to be at work at nine this morning I need to-" she begins. "I called in for you, they said not to worry, that you haven't taken a day off yet and they want you to take the week off," Jackie explains. Madge nods and thanks her, the panic and stress on her face dissolving. Jackie's pager goes off and she promises to check in later before disappearing through the double doors.

"You never told me what you do," I remind Madge. "You're right," she says.

"So?" I poke her arm.

"Sooooooooo" she says, drawing out the word until she runs out of breath. "It's going to sound dumb," she warns.

"No it isn't," I assure her.

"Ugh, fine. I'm a JFP," she says, looking carefully at me.

"A JFP?" I ask with a laugh. She nods with a groan. "You're serious?" I ask.

"Yep. Go ahead, get all of your laughing out of the way now," she clucks her tongue.

"My girlfriend is a JFP? That's hot," I say, not putting too much thought behind my words. I do, however, notice the color creep onto her face at the mention of the g-word.

"That's hot? Not the reaction I was expecting. But I'll take it," she laughs.

"So do you like, carry a gun?" I can't help but ask. She nods. JFPs are the newer, better peacekeepers. JFP means justice for the people, and is basically a squad of officers who go around and make sure the district is safe. However, there are no whippings, curfews, or harsh rules. A black button down, khaki pants and boots have taken the place of the tacky white suits, and JFPs are free to do as they please as soon as they clock out for the day. If Madge is a JFP, though, I can't help but wonder why I never saw her. I mean, the district is big, but the majority of it is surrounding villages of housing. The hustle and bustle of town is just above one square mile. We both live right on the outskirts of town, not even a mile from each other.

"When did you come here?" I ask.

"About four weeks ago," she says.

"From?"

"Six. Reed, Jackie's fiancé, was visiting his sisters in six and met me at the market where I worked. He said I looked familiar and we put the pieces together, and when he got on the train home, I went with him. Now I live with him and Jackie," she says with a smile.

I nod, trying to process my thoughts. "I'm just trying to figure out how we haven't run into each other yet, especially if you're a JFP," I say.

"I mainly work in the area of the district behind the left train station. It's very much like the part of the Seam back home where the Hob was," she says. "We stay in one spot all day usually," she adds.

"I've never been back there before, so that would explain it."

"But it doesn't explain why I never saw you on TV," she says.

"Haven't been on in a while. There hasn't been much going on in my field so they haven't needed me for a couple months," I say.  
"Your field?" She asks. "Let me guess...you're a world class weapon maker? Or a big wig government executive! No, wait, better yet, you're a top secret spy," she guesses.

"Covert intelligence," I laugh.

"Wouldn't have expected anything less," she laughs with me.

"Well... I am kind of a big deal," I say, getting another laugh out of her.

"So covert intelligence?"

"And government liaison," I add.

"Of course," she says as the door swings open. Jackie walks in, followed by a middle aged woman in a long white coat. "Dr. Kent, this is Madge Undersee. Madge, Dr. Kent. She'll be taking over from here. I'll leave you guys to it," she says with a smile, making a quick exit.

"Gale Hawthorne," I say, standing up and extending my hand to the doctor. She shakes it fairly firmly before pulling Madge's chart from the foot of the bed. Our hands subconsciously find each other as the doctor clears her throat and flips through the chart.

"Well, Madge. We ran some blood tests to see what it was that caused you to go unconscious last night. Your oxygen levels were normal, your blood pressure is perfectly healthy, and you aren't malnourished. We also did a CT scan, which is basically a giant x-ray of your body. We couldn't find anything out of the ordinary, though. We would have just chalked it up to dehydration, except it took much longer than it should have for you to come out of the next step for us is to do a magnetic resonance imaging test. We call it an MRI, and we put you on a rolling board which slides you underneath this big magnet and scans your body. It's much like a CT scan, and will look for anything abnormal that wouldn't have come up on a CT scan- spinal injury, brain tumor, soft tissue damage, that kind of thing."

Madge's face is as white as the bed sheet and her grip on my hand has tightened considerably. "We're going to be ready for you in about twenty minutes," Dr. Kent adds. Madge nods. "A nurse will be in soon to get you. I will see you later, it was nice meeting both of you. You're in good hands, Madge, I promise," she says with a smile. We thank her, and the second the door closes behind her, Madge breaks down crying.

"Talk to me," I tell her.

"What's happening to me?" she chokes out.

"I wish I knew," I say. "One thing I do know, though, is that everything will be fine, okay? Nothing bad is going to happen to you, not after everything just started being good again," I say, even if I don't completely believe my own words.

"They're putting me in some sort of _magnet_, Gale! They expect me just to be okay with everything they're doing, too. If you weren't there last night, I...I don't know.." her voice trails off.

"But I was there, so don't...just...I don't even know. Just know that Jackie wouldn't let them do anything wrong, right? All you have to do is say no, and they won't do anything. If they lay a hand on you without permission, I swear I-"

"Trust me, I know," she says, attempting a smile. "I'm just scared," she adds. I nod.

"I know,"I say, my breath catching in my throat as she continues to cry. I give her hand a squeeze. "You know I won't let them hurt you," I say.

"And what if it's something beyond your control? What happens then?" she practically shouts.

"Whoa, calm down, take a deep breath. Tons of things have been beyond my control, beyond your control, beyond _our _control before. We have always been okay in the end. Look where we are right now. Together. If we made it back together after all the shit that's gone down in the last year and a half, nothing can get in the way that we can't handle," I say, pushing the hair out of her face so I can see her eyes. They're glistening with tears, but still the same shade of blue they've always been.

"I know," she sighs eventually, wiping her eyes. "You're right, I'm worrying over nothing, I'm sure it will all be okay," she sniffles.

"It will be," I say.

"If you're being optimistic about something, I guess that's reason enough to believe you," she laughs. "You got me," I say, holding up my hands in surrender.

"I love you, do you know that?" she says after a moment. I nod, "I know," I say, leaning in and kissing her. She smiles as I pull back. Good timing, too, because the door swings open and Jackie walks in.

"Hey, guys. Madge, we're ready for you. I'll walk you down," she says.

"Can Gale come?" Madge asks before I have the chance to ask myself. Jackie shakes her head. "Nope, no one is allowed in the room, it's all computerized. You'll be back in an hour or so, though. He'll be right here," Jackie says, smiling at me. I nod at Madge. "I'll be waiting," I tell her. She sighs and then nods, getting out of the bed. I stand up and she wraps her arms around me. "I love you. You'll be fine, it's just a test," I whisper in her ear, embracing her. "I love you," she says back before letting go and slipping on a pair of hideous hospital-issued slippers. With one last look over er shoulder, Madge follows Jackie out of the room.

**A/N: Thoughts? Let me know what you think happened in the Capitol and what you think will happen next chapter! If you're right, I'll give you a shout out :)**


End file.
